Nothing Better
by Novacaine98
Summary: Life after Hogwarts is great for everyone. Voldemort is gone and life seems to be moving a long. Still somethings have been left unanswered. More summary inside.


Hermione Granger is engaged to Viktor Krum though she feels as though her heart belongs somewhere else. Meanwhile how far will Ron Weasley go to get the one girl he's always wanted?

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Hermione Granger sat with her knees brought up to her chin and arms wrapped around them on top of a wooden bench beneath the lone window of her bedroom. Outside the last remains of the winter's snow melted into the lawns and streets. The warm spring season had just arrived and with it a new change to her life and the lives of those around her.

Nearly four years ago the greatest dark wizard of all time, Lord Voldemort, had fallen at the hands of Harry Potter, though Harry would always insist that without herself or Ron Weasley that he never would have survived his first year at Hogwarts. The Golden Trio they were called and how golden they turned out to be.

A year after the fall of Voldemort, Hogwarts reopened and along with Ron and Harry, Hermione returned to finish up her seventh and final year. It was a hard year where the work came to lie but also one of the most joyous years of her magical education. Professor McGonagall was named Headmistress while Professor Binns became the second in charge. Order of the Phoenix member R.J. Lupin returned to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts at the profound request of students, faculty and parents alike. Alastor Moody also made his triumphant return to Hogwarts, this time for real and not locked in a trunk, to help out with lessons in Transfiguration and DADA when Professor Lupin was restricted to quarantine during a certain time of the month. Percy Weasley, who humbly and remorsefully returned to his family made his way back to Hogwarts as both an assistant to the faculty and a liaison to the Ministry of Magic, whom while not interfering at the school, did still maintain a knowledge of the curriculum being taught.

The biggest and most surprising return to Hogwarts was none other than Professor Severus Snape, who returned to resume his position as Potions Master. It was with the blessing of Albus Dumbledore, who's portrait was brought down into the Great Hall on the first day to tell all that it was he who asked for Snape to return. Even Harry, Ron, and Hermione applauded the return of the Potions Master, much to the amaze of the rest of the student body.

Not everyone returned to Hogwarts however. Draco Malfoy was killed during the Great War and thus did not return. Neither did his cohorts Crabbe and Goyle, both of whom were currently at a special Ministry controlled orphanage for children whose parents had been Death Eaters. From Gryffindor the most notable absences were Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan, both of whom found work at Fred and George Weasley's joke shop chain stores.

Ginny Weasley also returned to Hogwarts albeit it a month after all of the other students. For the first month Ginny was at a special tutoring program at the Ministry of Magic. During the fight against Voldemort, Ginny had been severely injured and was forced to spend months in care at St. Mongo's. It was during this time that Hermione gave Ginny her sixth year textbooks to read stating, "Hogwarts may be closed for now but that doesn't mean that you should not receive a thorough education." At first Ginny was less-than-pleased to be given textbooks to read while bed ridden but soon caved and started to study what the material left to her. When the summer arrived and it was announced that Hogwarts would be reopening, Ginny had already mastered all of her sixth year curriculum except potions. A quick chat with Professor McGonagall and then one with the Ministry and Ginny was taking year-end exams for her sixth year so that she may start her seventh year that fall. It was because of this that Ginny was in the special tutoring program, that month spent mastering her sixth year potions and passing, with Hermione like marks, the exam at the end of September, allowing her to return to Hogwarts on October first, as a seventh year student.

The seventh year at Hogwarts also saw one more change in the lives of the Golden Trio, specifically in the lives of Ron and Hermione. Now much more mature around each other it seemed as though just a matter of time before the two started dating. A lass though it did not happen. Hermione could never find the words to tell Ron how she truly felt and he never said anything either. Then during Christmas break Hermione ran into Viktor Krum and became reacquainted with the Bulgarian Seeker. A short while after the started dating, though Hermione who happened to like Viktor a little, mostly agreed to date him to see if it would ignite some sort of spark in Ron and get him to finally make a move. Unfortunately to Hermione's dismay Ron seemed to take a different direction, often telling Hermione how happy he was that she had found someone and being more than supportive of her relationship with Viktor. After time Hermione and Viktor's relationship grew and soon Hermione found herself falling deeply in love with Viktor Krum.

It would be the following Christmas when Hermione's life would once again change. On the anniversary of the day that she had once again met Viktor, the Bulgarian surprised her by proposing marriage, which Hermione joyfully accepted, having seemingly forgotten all about her feelings for a certain red-headed friend of hers. The wedding would be just a little over a month away in this coming June and was the reason that Hermione spent so much time staring out of her bedroom window.

There were many changes after graduating from Hogwarts as well. Ron and Harry who were set to go into the Auror training program at the Ministry had their lives dramatically changed by two simple letters over that summer. The letters, one for each, were invitations to tryout for the Chudley Cannons Quidditch Team. The two readily accepted and soon found themselves not only on the Cannons as keeper and seeker respectively but also on England's Quidditch World Cup team as well. The surprises did not end there though as the two friends ended up leading England to a world championship behind Harry's stellar play in the semi-finals against Bulgaria, snatching the snitch from Krum at a most impossible moment and Ron holding the high powered Irish offense to zero goals in the championship.

The biggest surprise though came from Hermione who enrolled in a program at St. Mongo's to become a healer and researcher of illness. During her program, Hermione was offered a chance to partake in several internships, only one of which was centered in London, assistant healer for the Chuddley Cannons. Hermione readily accepted the position as it allowed her to not only to stay living at home but also to see Ron and Harry on a constant basis.

Yes life had been quite exciting over these last few years. Still Hermione Granger could not understand why she spent countless hours staring out her bedroom window. Why she felt as though she was incomplete or why she was happier when she saw Ron then when she was with Viktor. Nor could she understand why sometimes she had the strangest recollection that she was in a parallel universe with Ron instead of Viktor. Though Hermione just thought these to be hopes and dreams of what might have happened.

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"Hello, nurse. Is anybody in here?" Ron peeked his head inside of the door, looking around.

"Yes, I'll be right there," answered an obviously female voice from a bit down the hall.

"Please hurry it's a bit of an emergency," replied Ron, instantly noting that it was Hermione to whom he was speaking.

"What is wrong?" Hermione asked as she came hurriedly into the room. "Ron," Hermione exclaimed when she noticed him standing there, perfectly fine.

"Hello Hermione," Ron said as cheerful as ever.

"Ron, what is going on?" Hermione fumed at him, her eyes projecting tiny razor sharp objects in his direction. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"Bloody hell calm down already 'Mione, I just wanted to come see you. I'm sorry I wanted to come and say hello to one of my best friends while I had a small break."

"It's nice of you to come and see me during your break but I'm dreadfully busy and besides you gave me a horrible fright, bursting in here as if something was seriously wrong."

"Sorry…" Ron muttered.

"What," Hermione asked, not quite catching what he had said.

"I'm sorry. Your right, I shouldn't have come in here and scared you like that."

"No shouldn't because next time when you are injured, I may not believe you."

"Why wouldn't you believe me?"

"Haven't you ever heard the story of the boy who cried wolf?"

"The boy who cried wolf? Why would he cry wolf? Was he being attacked by a werewolf?"

Hermione smiled as she put some magical remedies back into their cases. "Well sort of. You see, the boy who cried wolf is an old muggle fable."

"What's a fable?" Ron had taken a seat on the bench near the jars of magical remedies.

"A fable is a story that is told to teach a lesson. In this story, a boy kept yelling that a wolf was attacking him so as to get attention. Eventually everyone stopped paying attention to the boy and one night when a wolf really did attack him, no one came to his rescue because they all thought he was simply joking once more. So you see he cried, or deluded everyone about the wolf so many times that when there really was a wolf, no one believed him."

"So you're saying that if I keep coming in here saying that I'm injured when I'm really not that the time I am injured you won't believe me?"

"That's what I said isn't it?"

"Well, alright, but then how else am I supposed to show how much I care for you?"

For a moment and old hope and sensation arose in Hermione causing her to gasp and her cheeks to become slightly pink.

"You could do something nice for me or simply tell me," she said, a part of her hoping that what she had waited so long for was finally happening. Another part though told her that she had gotten her hopes up before only to be let down and that she was happily in love with Viktor. Was she really though?

Ron chuckled at Hermione though he failed to notice her blush. "Really now 'Mione, I thought you new me better than that. You know I'm not so good with words. I'm no William Shakesteer or whatever his name is."

"It's William Shakespeare Ron, and you don't have to be like him. You could simply say something like, 'Hermione I'm really happy your in my life' or 'Hermione you're a very special friend to me' or "Hermione I feel…'"

"I feel what," asked Ron as Hermione seemed to have found her feet rather interesting.

"Nothing," Hermione replied. "Well it's been awhile, you should probably get back to practice."

"Yeah, guess I should." Ron said nothing else as he walked out the door and for that Hermione was thankful for she had almost let too much slip, once more.

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As Hermione made her way back to another room of the infirmary, she had another strange recollection. This one though was not of her and Ron happily in love but quite the opposite. She had a feeling that he had hurt her somehow or done something that made her angry with and destroyed their relationship. Quickly though Hermione pushed the thought out of her head, which was a good thing as she had another visitor.

"Hermione, my dear," said the gruff voice from behind her.

At once Hermione turned with a smile on her face towards her fiancé. "Viktor what brings you here?"

"Hermione," Viktor said as he took her hand and led her to a couple of chairs by a long rectangular cabinet in the room. "We must talk."

"Viktor is every thing al right," asked Hermione.

"That my dear is a question which is hard to answer, though I believe it will be."

If Viktor had intended to confuse and worry Hermione any farther he certainly did.

"I believe that it is time we faced the truth."

"What truth?" Hermione still sat with a look of puzzlement upon her face. She wondered if something was wrong with their relationship?

"The truth Hermione that your heart does not belong to me. That it belongs to another."

At once Hermione rushed to tell Viktor how wrong he was but something held her back. Something deep inside that told her Viktor was right.

"Your heart cannot belong to me and it never has for it always belong to someone else. For it has always belonged to your friend Ron."

Her face was now stricken with sorrow for the heartbreak that Viktor must be feeling. Again Hermione attempted to speak, this time not to correct him, but to tell him how sorry she was for hurting him.

Viktor though, hushed her gently. "It is okay my dear, I am not upset. Hurt a little, but I will get over it. Even if we are not to be, you will always be my friend Hermione Granger."

"And mine too Viktor Krum," replied Hermione who had finally found her voice.

Viktor got up and Hermione rose with him, their hands enlaced, though quite loosely.

"Please do me one favor," Viktor said.

"Of course, Viktor, what?"

"If your friend Ron does not come to you then go to him. Do not wait forever."

"I won't, I won't," Hermione said as she hugged Viktor. It would be the last time Hermione Granger would ever see Viktor Krum though she did not know that.

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Nearly a month had passed since Hermione's relationship with Viktor had ended. Everyone was wholly supportive though she did not tell all of the real reason for her separation. In fact the only soul she told was that of Ginny Weasley Potter.

Ron of course was extremely supportive, constantly offering to talk with Hermione if she ever needed to. Hermione thought that perhaps one of those times Ron would finally confess his feelings but alas he did not. She then thought about what Viktor asked her to do but something inside of her held her back. It was that same part of her heart that had always wished that Ron would make the first move.

Along with the departure of Viktor came the departure of something else from Hermione's life. She no longer had those strange feelings of recollection. They seemed to have stopped all together and Hermione thought that it was just her heart telling her what she really wanted. She would soon find out what those recollections were after all. She would find it out by a simple knock at her door.

"Who is it?" called Hermione. While Lord Voldemort had been gone for some time now, there were still lunatics out in the world and it wasn't always the smartest idea to open your door to strangers at night.

"It's me," came the voice of Ron who sounded quite nervous.

Opening the door, Hermione ushered in pale Ron. "Ron, what is it? Is something the matter?"

Moving over towards the couch, Ron beckoned for Hermione to come and sit by him. "Hermione I have something to confess."

Once again an old hope and sensation arose in Hermione causing her to gasp and her cheeks to become slightly pink. This time though, nothing pushed it back down.

Ron though reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver chain with an hourglass attached to it and handed it to Hermione.

"Ron is this a time-turner?"

"It's the newest version. Works exactly like the one you used to have but has one new feature."

"What?" asked Hermione curiously as she studied the object in her hands.

"Well if you go back in time and something goes wrong, you can return to the previous time from which you came and everything will be as it was when you left."

Ron wasn't quite sure if Hermione had understood what he had said but realization seemed to have dawned upon her face.

She still though was quite curious as to why Ron was so nervous about having a time-turner. "So why do you have this Ron?"

"That is what I need to confess and I'm afraid that you won't much like it."

"I won't," said Hermione who's attention was now fully on Ron.

"When you and Viktor announced your engagement something inside of me snapped. There was something inside of me that wanted to go back and change the past. So when this time-turner fell into my possession I did the only thing I could think of doing, I went back into the past."

Hermione shifted for a moment, wondering just what Ron had changed in the past.

"The first time I went back to our fourth year, to the Yule Ball. This time though instead of being an insensitive jerk I asked you to go to the ball with me straight away. It was then we started going out and we were so happy and in love. Then one day I told you what I did with the time-turner and you grew angry with me and that was the end of us. So I used the time-turner to go back to the way things were before I ventured into the past."

Hermione sat quietly, waiting to see if Ron would continue or not.

"The second time I used the time-turner, I went back to our sixth year. This time when Ginny told you had snogged Viktor Krum instead of being mad at you for no reason I went and talked to you. I told you how I was upset because I wanted it to be me who was kissing you and you said that I should just shut up and kiss you then, so I did. Again we started dating and everything was perfect until one day I told you about the time-turner and again you grew angry. So again I went back to the way things were. I haven't used it ever again."

Tears slowly slid down Hermione's cheeks as she registered what Ron had told her. Inside she was torn, a part of her touched that he would go back in time to be with her, to make things how they should have been. Another part though was angry and she didn't quite know why, though she did know that it was this part of her that had ended their fictional relationships.

Ron though could only notice the tears streaming down Hermione's cheeks. "Please don't cry 'Mione, I'm so sorry," he sobbed, his eyes now also filled with tears.

"Oh Ron," whispered Hermione. "Don't you see? You didn't need to go back into the past to win my heart, you've always had it. All you had to do was reach out and grab it."

"But you were with Viktor and…"

"Ron, I too have a confession to make. I lied about why Viktor and I broke up." Hermione paused for a moment to wipe her eyes as Ron looked at her perplexed by what she had just said. "The reason we broke up was because my heart didn't belong to him, it belonged to you."

"But what will be different this time?" asked Ron. "Every time I changed the past we always broke up and the fights were horrible. We ended up never speaking to or seeing each other ever again."

"What's different is that this time instead of going into the past you came to me. You came to me sorry for what you had done instead of trying to deceive me or what my life was like. Don't you see Ron, all our lives we've been growing towards this moment. The reason we always broke up was because we weren't ready yet but now we are."

"Hermione what do you mean?" Ron wiped away the last tear as he found something new in Hermione's eyes. He found something warm inside them.

"I mean that I'm completely in love with you Ronald Weasley."

Before Ron could reply or even fathom what she had just said, Hermione embraced his lips with hers.

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Sixth months later Hermione Granger sat with her head in the crevice between her knees with her arms wrapped around them, on a flimsy cushion on top of a wooden bench below the lone window of her bedroom. Outside their house the warm spring air blew about as a tall red-haired man raked leaves in their front yard. Being a wizard he simply could have waved his wand and they would be gone but instead her preferred to do it the muggle way. Hermione did not know why this was as he seemed to think that muggles had such unorthodox and hard ways of doing anything else. She did however understand one thing, that she loved Ronald Weasley and to her there was nothing better.

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Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns everything Harry Potter.


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